Senator Van Hollen makes a major announcement regarding Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
(L) Senator Chris Van Hollen (R) Rep. April McClain Delaney
Hagerstown, Md (KM) A large number of people attended a town hall meeting in Hagerstown sponsored by 6th District Representative April McClain Delaney. Senator Chris Van Hollen also attended.
During the discussion of national issues and the impacts they have locally, Senator Van Hollen made this announcement about Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident who was apprehended by federal immigration agents in March, and sent to a prison in El Salvador. “I am planning tomorrow {Wed) to go El Salvador,” he said to a cheering crowd at North Hagerstown High School. “To work to bring him home.”
The Trump Administration says it made “an administrative error” in deporting Abrego Garcia to El Salvador. The administration has been ordered by a federal judge to bring Abrego Garcia back to the US.
The Administration says Abrego Garcia is a member of the MS 13 gang. His attorneys say their client is not an MS 13 gang member, and has been never been in trouble with the law.
Another topic addressed at the town hall was the SAVE Act, which was introduced to help fight voter fraud. It requires anyone registering to vote to show evidence of American citizenship such as birth certificate, a US passport or naturalization papers. The bill was approved by the House of Representatives. Congresswoman McClain Delaney voted against it. “The SAVE Act is a very bad piece of legislation” she said to sound of boos from the audience. “It purports to make sure only Americans are voting. But what it’s really doing is trying to disenfranchise millions and millions of voters across this country.”
She said it would make it difficult for women who have changed their last names after getting married register to vote. “Millions of women like me who have a different married name—McClain Delaney as opposed to April McClain–need to go back and try and get all the paperwork,” McClain Delaney said.
Senator Ven Hollen said he will fight against it when it comes up in the Senate for a vote.
A question came up about the future of Social Security and Medicare. Representative McClain Delaney spoke about that. “We’re going to make sure it’s protected,” she promised. “Medicare and Social Security is not an entitlement. People have earned it…..and it’s obscene that Social Security would be threatened.”
Senator Van Hollen also noted that Elon Musk called Social Security a Ponzi Scheme. He also said the Republicans seem to have a plan to privatize Social Security. “Let’s you have a question. You call them on the phone. You can’t get through. After a while, when no one’s responsive to your calls or to your e-mail, then people begin to go ‘oh well,, maybe we do need to privatize Social Security,’”: he said.
Both Van Hollen and McClain Delaney are Democrats.
As the town hall was ending, Representative McClain Delaney told the audience if they have any questions or concerns to contact her office, and her staff would get back to them as soon as possible.
By Kevin McManus